I hate to break it to you, but Pearl Jam’s 10th album is both a beautiful – and disjointed – mess. Let’s face it – any band that makes it to 10 studio albums deserves the title of ‘legacy act.’ As such, the pressure to make the album that befits the pedigree of such a widely accepted rock band is gargantuan in nature. Another pitfall of a legacy album is that you’re generally only a good as the last two […]

Pearl Jam, Pearl Jam, PEARL JAM!!!! The last time Pearl Jam had a new album out was 2009’s Backspacer which, for me at least, was kind of a blip on the radar of magnificent Pearl Jam releases. Since then, there have been the inevitable side projects and relentless touring as well as a certain drummer of the band reuniting with some other Seattle band for an album and subsequent tour (Soundgarden). But I digress. PJ is now back with Lightning […]

Pearl Jam’s countdown clock has struck 00:00:00 again! On the heels of a North American tour announcement comes word of a brand new album entitled Lightning Bolt, on October 15th, and a brand spankin’ new dose of music in the form of first single “Mind Your Manners”. Remember “Spin the Black Circle,” off of their third album Vitalogy? While it lacks the urgency of that track – the vibrant, punk attitude is completely alive (and well) on this bad boy. It doesn’t […]

As you may or may not know, writing for Popblerd is merely what I do during the day; at night, I dive headfirst into the glamorous world of karaoke, where I make my money congenially badgering people into singing in front of strangers. (I also do the “Cupid Shuffle”, like, a lot. It’s a dance comprised of four simple steps, which really speaks to my whiteness dancing abilities.) But the simple fact remains that, while karaoke has gained a lot […]

Rock documentaries can be a bit of a tightrope act for filmmakers. On one side of the line are the diehard fans, the ones who have followed the band for years and obsessively researched every last detail about their favorite musicians. On the other are the casual fans and general audiences that may barely know the subject at all. It can be hard to cater to both sides, and often directors have to choose who they want to favor: do […]